Oh, what a mess. Would that we could just flip a switch and it would all be over. CRT and racism, real institutional evil, the conflicting agenda surrounding the pandemic, and weak leadership constantly bring American down from within. So much for being on the same team, sharing the same culture and values…
One disease runs through it all: faith in the wrong institutions.
We choose sides in political parties and have too much faith in the efficacy of government. We will always be disappointed.
Too many people choose the wrong institution to believe in, as any secular deity will never care enough about anything except its own perpetuation.
The root problem is a lack of faith in God, first, above all. Thinking the government, or courts, can solve all evil is absurd. We can no more eliminate racism than we can eliminate caner, stupidity, and Boston fans. We manage them, to the best of our better nature and ability.
An earnest, fervent, and thoughtful belief in a greater power is the predicate for a moral life, a life of purpose driven with a goal of going to heaven after our weak corporal existence. Sure, we all know good people who don’t believe in God who live a moral life, yet…
Ring out a slowly dying cause,
And ancient forms of party strife;
Ring in the nobler modes of life,
With sweeter manners, purer laws.
With a real foundation in God everything becomes a moral question, right vs. wrong, good vs. evil. Laws are meant to mete out justice or equality, but they are not always moral. Abortion is legal, but there is no moral justification.
God, and faith in His institutions, is under assault in the world from within and without, under the guise of public safety. It will take the courage of faith to get back to worship as it should be.
Look what Newsome got away with in California for over a year: he closed church worship. A neat trick, and when combined with an epidemic homeless problem in that most beautiful of states, you can understand that managing stupidity is harder than it looks.
Let’s rehash the Catholic Church. Its leadership (the bishopric is its own institution) failed the faithful and the innocent throughout the world by not exposing pedophilia and bad actors in a rational, legal, and timely manner. It will forever pay the price of a tarnished reputation, efforts at redemption notwithstanding.
Then the bishopric was prostrate when states shut them down, even eating the nonsense that abortion clinics and liquor stores were essential but responsible worship was outlawed.
Yes, outlawed. Insane, appalling, wrong, and unconstitutional.
I heard two Catholic sermon/homilies a few months ago when tempers were red hot. Father James Altman of Wisconsin castigated the church’s leadership for not pressing harder with creative ways to get people into pews. That took courage. Father Altman was asked to resign by his bishop because Altman spoke of tending to his spiritual flock, essentially his one true job.
Another sermon was a lecture on civility and not being racist. Talk about preaching to the choir. A good talk, but if God was first, really first, the moral issue of hate cannot grow into the ugly snarly beast of racism.
If racism isn’t evil, then nothing is. That should be simple to grasp. Yet taking away personal responsibility (and thinking) is the antithesis of free will, our gift from God. And our moral responsibility.
If God is first, and we all truly strive to get to heaven through our deeds, evil can be overcome in the hearts and minds of men.
If you have more faith in politics than the Lord you will never overcome evil, as right and wrong will remain a matter of degree and debate. There really is no grey area.
In a recent TV interview, former president Obama mocked those who would “be afraid of CRT.” Mocking opposing views can be effective, but greater minds than mine have already firmly established CRT’s Marxist roots. The shame is that school boards and education in general have been infected with the cancer surrounding this ideology of division between the alleged oppressors and the oppressed. We know where Marxism places religion.
We can’t eliminate cancer or stupidity or gullibility. We can only manage it.
Ring our false pride in place and blood,
The civic slander and the spite;
Ring in the love of truth and right,
Ring in the common love of good.
Forgiveness and redemption do not start with political bantering and argument. They start in the heart, in the family, in loving one another as you would love yourself.
A last word on any church or institution of higher devotion. The faithful are forgiving, to a degree, as long as there is righteous accountability.
But the people won’t countenance cowardice. Take heed. Man up, or collar up, if you will. Push back against the secular institutions that would prefer you and your flock would simply go away quietly.
Please keep the faith in God’s grace and Humanity’s best nature. (Only kidding about Boston fans. Most are fine people with misguided notions of destiny. Sad, but I love ‘em anyway.)
Ring in the valiant man and free,
The larger heart, the kindlier hand;
Ring out the darkness of the land,
Ring in the Christ that is to be.
from Alfred, Lord Tennyson, "In Memorium"